), and that uplift occurred in the late Neogene (Miocene–Pliocene) despite the onset of the India/Eurasia continental collision occurring in the Paleogene. Linked to the simple monolithic uplift concept is the idea that Tibet rose purely due the collision of India with Eurasia (e.g. Moreover, within this concept of a rising plateau it is not unusual to find Tibet and the Himalaya combined into a single entity, yet by conflating their separate geological histories the complex interactions between deep crustal processes, topography, climate and biodiversity become obscured. It implies that this enormous and almost flat-surfaced portion of Earth's surface rose as a coherent entity, but this unlikely scenario has gained traction largely through simplistic modeling despite long-standing evidence that shows Tibet evolved in piecemeal manner. The phrase ‘the uplift of the Tibetan Plateau’ permeates the scientific literature, extending even into the realms of molecular phylogeny. Yellow triangles denote the positions of mountain peaks referred to in the text. Plant fossil localities referred to in the text are shown as red circles. Map and inset showing the Tibet region including the main topographic features, faults bounding the Tibetan Plateau to the north and west and the main sutures: YTSZ, Yarlung–Tsangpo suture zone BNSZ, Bangong–Nujiang suture zone JSZ, Jinsha suture zone KSZ, Kunlun suture zone. Here, we review the topographic evolution of the Tibetan region as a complement to recent comprehensive reviews of the geology because it is topography that exerts changes in atmospheric dynamics and provides a three-dimensional landscape within which the terrestrial biota functions and evolves. The presence of the plateau is thought to exert profound influences on the Asian monsoon systems, and by extension Asian biodiversity, so understanding the evolution of Tibetan topography is critical for exploring the links between them. Westward the plateau boundary is marked by the Karakoram strike-slip fault, while 2000 km to the east the plateau morphs into the Hengduan Mountains and ramps down into Yunnan and Sichuan.
Averaging in excess of 4500 m above mean sea level, the plateau extends 1000 km southward from the Altyn Tagh fault to the Yarlung–Tsangpo suture zone (YTSZ), south of which is the Himalayan thrust belt. (Fig.1) 1) is the most extensive elevated surface on Earth. Over an area of 2500 000 km 2, the modern Qinghai–Tibetan Plateau (Fig.
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